Entering the 2022-23 season, you’d be called delusional and borderline insane if you insisted the Chicago Bulls would host one of the NBA’s top defenses. Posting a 113.2 defensive rating last season (112.2 following the All-Star Break), the Bulls held the league’s 5th-highest-rated defense (2nd-best after the All-Star Break) and shocked doubters everywhere.
If you don’t believe the stats, that’s fine, because even other players are beginning to give their flowers to Billy Donovan’s elite defensive schemes. Cam Thomas of the Brooklyn Nets, in particular, was keen to give the Bulls credit for ending his incredible 40-point scoring streak earlier this season.